Libby Hoffman
Exploring the Inner Translations of Peace and Restoration
For more than two decades, Libby Hoffman has supported community-led restoration initiatives, particularly in West Africa, bringing these lessons to the world. In 2003, she founded Catalysts for Peace, a private foundation to “grow a new architecture for peace—one that works from the inside out, where those most impacted by violence and war” lead and cultivate the path to peace and reconciliation. Following a devastating 11-year civil war in Sierra Leone, she also co-founded in 2008 the Fambul Tok program, which means “family talk” in Krio. A key culminating feature of these reconciliation efforts is a bonfire ceremony of truth-telling, apology, and forgiveness—with years of preparatory and follow-up work in a process designed and led by the communities themselves. Libby invites us to take a different lens to our own lives and ask “Who do we need to forgive? Who do we need to apologize to? … And how well do our communities help us to deal with conflict constructively?"
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